What is TMD?

Temporomandibular disorder, known as TMD, is a cycle of pain, muscle spasms, and joint imbalance where the jaw meets the skull at the temporomandibular joint, known as the TMJ. This joint connects the temporal bone of the skull with the mandible bone of the jaw. Cushioning these two bones is a thin disc of cartilage. Five muscles support the joint. Read further to learn more about the symptoms, causes, and how to break the cycle of TMD.

When the balance of these bones, cartilage, and muscles is lost, it can cause:

      Headaches
      Earaches
      Difficulty opening and closing your mouth
      A clicking or popping in the joint
      A dull aching pain around the ear that spreads into the face
      Sore or painful jaw muscles

This cycle of pain, spasms, and joint imbalance can be started by clenching or grinding the teeth, a bad bite caused by missing teeth or poorly aligned teeth, a blow to the joint. arthritis or emotional stress.

Clenching and grinding will often go away once a person's stress is reduced. In the meantime, there are other ways to break this cycle. You can reduce muscle spasms and pain with:

      Moist heat
      Inflammation-reducing drugs and muscle relaxants
      Muscle massage
      A soft diet

To restore balance to the joint, we can crown teeth, fill spaces, adjust the bite using a procedure called equilibration, or even move teeth. A splint, which is a plastic mouthpiece, can reduce clenching and grinding, which can also help restore harmony to the joint. In extremely severe cases, surgery may be necessary to repair the damaged part of the joint.

Millions of people suffer from TMD. Treatment and lifestyle changes can break the TMD cycle and restore harmony to the joint.

Mother nature didn't provide all of us with a stable, healthy bite. Some people have bites that have been affected by wear, changed by dentals restorations, or that have shifted with time.

A healthy bite allows all of your teeth to hit simultaneously and evenly when your jaw joint is seated into its proper position at the base of your skull. In this position, your chewing muscles are also contracting evenly. One way to test your bite is to shift your jaw to the side. Your canine teeth, or eye teeth, should be the only teeth hitting and should absorb all the lateral biting force.

When you have a bad bite, also called a malocclusion, your teeth do not align properly. This can cause damage to your teeth and restorations, and it can also set off a cycle of muscle spasms, pain, and soreness commonly referred to as TMD, or temporomandibular disorder.

When the balance is lost among the bones, cartilage, and muscles of the temporomandibular joint, it can lead to:

      Headaches
      Earaches
      Difficulty opening and closing your mouth
      A clicking or popping in the joint
      A dull aching pain around the ear that spreads into the face
      Sore or painful jaw muscles

A malocclusion can also cause a condition called bruxism, which is the clenching or grinding of the teeth that occurs primarily while sleeping. The symptoms of bruxism are worn teeth, notching at the gumline (called abfraction), as well as all the symptoms associated with TMD.

Abfraction is the notching of teeth near or even under the gumline. When your bite is slightly off, undue stress is placed on the involved teeth and they begin to flux. This continual flexing and stress eventually cause the enamel to separate from the inner dentin layer, forming abfraction's characteristic notch at the gumline.

We can perform a complete bite evaluation, which will help us address any potential problems early in their development. Adjusting, realigning, or restoring teeth can prevent many future complications, and can help you gain optimal muscle balance and a comfortable bite.